Aircel Chennai Open Trophy Travels 350 Kms, Touches 4500 Fans in Chennai

The 2015 edition of the Aircel Chennai Open will mark two decades since the very first game of India’s premier and South Asia’s only ATP World Tour stop was played. To commemorate the tournament’s fantastic achievements, students from 12 schools and 14 colleges got an opportunity to celebrate their very own World Tour event and catch a glimpse of the 2015 Aircel Trophy during a Tour over 2 weeks in Chennai.

The Twentieth Year celebrations of India’s only ATP World Tour stop include a host of exciting activities sure to thrill tennis fans who are waiting to enjoy scintillating tennis action at Chennai’s SDAT Tennis Stadium between January 5 and 11, 2015. Initiatives include a renovated SDAT Stadium, the launch of a special logo created to mark the occasion, free passes to school students from Government schools to watch matches for the first four days, and a host of ongoing activities across India.

The exclusive trophy tour visited Chennai’s most prominent landmarks including 12 schools, 14 colleges, 6 IT Parks, 5 Public Parks & locations and 3 Tennis Academies over a course of two weeks. Some of the iconic locations covered during the ACO trophy tour were Loyola College, MOP College for Women, Ethiraj College, Ascendas IT Park, YMCA Nandanam, Padma Sarangani School, EGA Theatre, Marina Beach, TIDEL Park and CTS (Cognizant).

This ACO trophy is an amalgamation of classic and contemporary stylizations. Much like the sport it represents, with traditional values in an ever changing modern world. The bands of intricate hand detailed motifs, the sweeping elegant contours and the touch of rich 24k gold gilt are all symbolic of excellence. This trophy is designed, handcrafted and hallmarked for Aircel exclusively by Frazer and Haws.

While fans young and old grabbed the fantastic chance to witness the premier ATP tennis symbol in their own neighbourhood and take pictures with it, the Tour also offered people a chance to participate in exciting quiz sessions and an Aircel Fastest Serve Challenge to win loads of prizes that included about 400 tickets and 750 special tennis balls.

The Aircel Fastest Serve Challenge was organized at Phoenix Market City, Chennai on December 20, 21, 27 and 28. As a prelude to the Aircel Chennai Open 2015, scheduled to be held from January 5 to 11, mobile service provider Aircel had floated a 'fastest serve challenge', wherein people could try swinging the racket to clock ball speeds touching 96 mph, and win tickets. Youngsters thronged the serving booth in a desperate attempt to get one of three chances right to clinch the announced prize. The Tennis fans and enthusiasts will also get the opportunity to participate in the Aircel fastest serve Challenge at the stadium for all 4 days.

The Title Sponsor for the tournament is Aircel and the event is supported by a consortium of sponsors in the Platinum category, headed by the Government of Tamil Nadu.

About Aircel Chennai Open 2015:

The USD 450,000 Aircel Chennai Open, owned by IMG and operated and organised by IMG Reliance, is India's and South Asia's only ATP World Tour event. Started in 1996, by IMG, a global leader in sports management and marketing, the event has completed 20 successful years of existence, branding Chennai and India on the global tennis map thus creating a legacy of sorts of promoting international tennis in India. Winner of the prestigious ATP's Player Services Award of Excellence (2006) for its outstanding organization and wonderful hospitality towards the participants and ATP's Best Marketing Award (2008), the tournament has acquired the status of a much sought-after tennis event for both players and fans alike in the International tennis circuit. The 20^th edition of the event in India and 19^th in Chennai will be held from 5^th – 11^th January, 2015 at the SDAT Tennis stadium in Nungambakkam, Chennai. The tournament is conducted in Chennai with the active collaboration of the Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu (SDAT) and Tamil Nadu Tennis Association (TNTA).

About Aircel:

Aircel is one of India’s leading innovative mobile service providers. The company has 3G spectrum in 13 circles and BWA spectrum in 8 circles and is credited with the fastest 3G roll out ever in the Indian telecom space. As a young data led telecom player, Aircel has constantly been at the helm of introducing innovative and value for money products and services for its customers, which are industry firsts, be it the Aircel Pocket Internet, taking the first step in making 3G affordable for the masses, being the first telecom player to introduce Facebook Voice Updates on Aircel, and many more. The Smart Pocket Internet data plans by Aircel truly changed the way mobile internet was perceived and consumed. The company has been the proud recipient of coveted awards such as Asia Responsible Entrepreneurship Awards (AREA) 2012 South Asia by Enterprise Asia, ‘Excellence Award for Security in Telecom 2012’ by Data Security Council of India (DSCI) an institution setup by NASSCOM®, ‘Best in class Learning and Development Awards’ for ‘Innovation in Learning’ and ‘Best Training Venue’ by World HRD Congress in 2013 and CLO Learning in Practice Award 2014 in the Silver category.

For more information, please log onto our website www.aircel.com.

About IMG:

IMG is a global leader in sports, fashion and media operating in more than 30 countries around the world. IMG’s businesses include Events & Media, College, Golf, Tennis, Performance and IMG Academy, Fashion, Models, Clients, Consulting, Licensing, Joint Ventures, and creative management agency Art + Commerce. In 2014, IMG was acquired by WME, the world’s leading entertainment and media agency. Together, the companies offer an unparalleled client roster; world-class partnerships with sponsors, brands and broadcasters; and marquee assets across entertainment, events and fashion. 

About IMG Reliance:

IMG Reliance Pvt Ltd., is an equal joint venture between Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), India’s largest and most recognized private sector company, and IMG Worldwide (IMG), the world’s leading sports marketing and management company. The joint venture company will develop, market and manage sports and entertainment in India. Its current assets include India’s premier fashion event, Lakmé Fashion Week and South Asia’s only ATP World Tour event, the Aircel Chennai Open. IMG Reliance has entered agreements with the Basketball Federation of India (BFI) to create a new professional basketball league and manage all aspects of the commercial rights to the game in India and the All India Football Federation (AIFF), to improve, popularize and promote the game of football throughout India, from the grassroots to the professional level. IMG Reliance has also created a scholarship program to identify and train talented young Indians from sports including – basketball, soccer and tennis-at IMG’s world-class sports training facilities at IMG Academies in Bradenton, Florida.